The Princess and The Philanderer
by Brunosaurs4
Summary: A series of one-shots chronicling moments in Lucina and Inigo's relationship.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem.**

* * *

**THE PRINCESS AND THE PHILANDERER**

It was night, and the army had made camp. Everyone was busy in their work, eating, checking up on their weapons, provisions, practicing, or had plain fallen asleep.

One person, however, wasn't doing much.

Inigo was slipping off into the woods, in the direction of the village. No one seemed to be noticing him; no one, that is, except for Lucina.

Lucina frowned as she watched him. She wished the unruly mercenary would stay around, didn't he know it was dangerous to wander around by himself at night? The Risen could attack him!

'_He's probably going to the village for some girl_,' said a small voice in the back of her mind. She brushed it off. He was always like this, she reflected. It wasn't that he wasn't a good fighter; on the contrary, he was excellent in battle, calm, focused, absolutely lethal. But off the field, he was an idiot whose only interest seemed to woo girls and go around grinning like an fool. Especially lately he'd seem to become even worse; there probably wasn't a girl in camp that he had hit on.

'_Been noticing him a lot lately, haven't we_?' the voice in her head said. She shook her head. "Everyone's noticed," she muttered. "He's literally hits on every female. Everyone! And Noire told me she once saw him hitting on a sign post." She sighed. "This isn't going to work. I'll go get him back. Sneaking off to see girls is not a good thing for a Shepherd! He needs to rest in order to be in top condition in battle."

'_Jealous?_' the voice asked.

"No I'm not!" she said. "I am not interested what girl he spends his time with. I just don't want him dead because he's a useful addition to the army."

'_Then why're you thinking so much about him?_' the voice persisted.

Inigo had disappeared into the forest, and she set off in his direction, thinking furiously. This was ridiculous. Inigo was an idiot, a fluff-headed fool! So why did she feel so weird about him? He was the stupid one, he was the one who kept pestering her to smile, at a time like this, in the middle of a war, dammit, he was the one who kept making stupid jokes and flirting and yet she still…

'… _you like him_,' the voice said. Lucina bit her lip. '_I do not,_' she argued back. It was him, his fault. She was just going to go and tell him-

Then she came upon Inigo, she forgot what she was going to say.

Inigo hadn't gone to the village. He had made his was to a small clearing in the woods, secluded from the camp. And he was dancing.

Lucina stared.

The clearing was dappled with moonlight, and a soft breeze was blowing in the trees. And in the middle of this, Inigo was dancing. He was going slowly, sensuously, spinning and circling and… dancing. It was amazing. He was amazing.

Lucina blushed. Her mind was a confused jumble of emotions. Some part of her mind registered that her jaw was hanging open and how horribly inappropriate it was to stare at someone without their knowledge, but the most part of her mind was only registering the fact that Inigo was dancing, and he looked beautiful and graceful and so, so wonderful.

Almost mesmerized, she took a step forward… and winced as a branch cracked under her feet.

Inigo stopped immediately, looking in her direction. His sharp eyes picked her out, even in the shadows.

"L-Lucina!" He exclaimed.

Lucina stared back at him. He was flushed and breathing heavily, his face covered by a thin sheen of sweat. He was just wearing a simple shirt and pant, and she noticed that his shirt was sticking to him, and the top of it was open, and the net result was that she could see every contour of his torso.

Suddenly, Lucina felt that it had gotten very, very hot in the clearing. She bit her lip and tried to regain her composure.

"Hi… I was looking for you," she said, trying to keep her voice calm.

"D-did you SEE me?!" Inigo asked. "Did you see me… dancing?"

"Yeah," Lucina said. "You were quite-"

"Argh , no!" Inigo cried. "I'm so SORRY! I bet it was horrible! Lucina, please don't tell anyone, okay? Seriously!"

"No, it was quite good," Lucina said, frowning. "You were wonderful."

Inigo stopped panicking and stared at her. "What?" he asked, suspicion coloring his voice. "I- really?"

"Yeah," Lucina said. "It was very good- you are a really good dancer."

"Oh," Inigo said, seeming to calm down a bit. "Well, yeah, thanks. Um, I gotta go. Bye!" And before she could say anything else, he ran past her towards the camp.

Lucina stood for a moment, staring at the place Inigo had been dancing.

'_Okay, so maybe I like him a LITTLE bit_,' she admitted to herself.

* * *

**Read and Review please!**


	2. Chapter 2

Hi, I want to thank everyone who reviewed everyone who reviewed this story! :D

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Fire Emblem.**

* * *

The attack had come unexpectedly. The army had been marching through what had appeared to be an unoccupied valley. It had been a good day, and everyone had let their guards down a little, when out of nowhere, a horde of Risen had attacked them.

Lucina had been walking a little way behind the group when the attack occurred. There had been a cry of warning, and then a Risen had jumped down on her. She cut it down with a clean stroke of the Falchion, then looked ahead to see more Risen pouring down the sides off the valley, their attack concentrated on the centre of the army. Another Risen came at her. She kicked it, hacked its head off, then swung her sword to meet the blade of another when she felt a swiping pain at her back. A Risen had sneaked up behind her. She sidestepped, ready to attack, when both Risen crumbled to dust in front of her. Inigo stood there, his sword held out in front of him.

"Thanks," she said briefly. He nodded and turned back to the fighting. Without saying anything, she fell back against him, a routine they'd gone through a hundred times over; fighting back to back, defending each other.

Then there was a loud scream, and Lucina stopped in dread. Both of them turned to the sound of the voice, then quickly made their way in the direction of the scream, cutting down any Risen in their path. Lucina's mind was racing with worries. What if someone was dead? One of their friends, or- or her parents….?

'_No, don't think like that_,' she said to herself.

They came to a group of Risen who were trying to get to some Shepherds, who'd taken refuge behind some boulders. Lucina cut through a Risen, when her eyes fell on a figure lying on the ground.

It was Olivia.

She was lying in a pool of blood. Maribelle was kneeling beside her, trying to heal her. Gaius and Donnel were standing over them, trying to fight off the uncoming monsters. Gaius's arm was twisted at an unnatural angle, but he didn't seem to be showing any signs of giving in.

Beside her, Inigo let out a roar of rage. Jumping forward and started cutting down Risen with a ferocity she'd never seen before. Soon, they'd dispatched all the Risen that had surrounded them. Inigo kneeled beside his mother's limp body. There was a cut across her chest, blood oozing out of the wound.

"Mother," he whispered.

"Inigo," Gaius said. "More of the Risen are coming."

"The wound's too deep," Maribelle said, shaking her head. "I-I'll try to heal her, but I need a stronger healing staff, otherwise…"

With an effort, Inigo turned away from his mother. "Right," he said, gritting his teeth. "We have to kill them all."

* * *

The battle was over, and the Risen had all been destroyed. Lucina was working with the rest of the Shepherds,trying to access the damage. Her eyes kept going over to the hastily erected healers' tent, where Olivia had been taken. Gaius and Inigo were with her. They were taking a long time.

Her own parents were fine. Most of the others here as well; some had sustained injuries, but none of them as major as Olivia's. Lucina prayed that she was alright. She didn't want to think otherwise.

After some time, Libra exited the tent, and Lucina went to him. "What happened? How is she?" She asked.

"She's been healed," Libra said. "But she's lost a lot of blood, and she's still unconscious."

Lucina nodded, and Libra left. She was debating whether to enter the tent or not, when Gaius and Lissa came out, arguing about something. They gave her only a cursory glance before walking off; Gaius, she noted, was still holding his arm strangely. She entered the tent.

Inside, it was cool and dim. At the far side was a small cot, in which Olivia lay. Inigo sat beside her.

Lucina went to him. "Inigo?" She asked, softly. He looked up.

"Lucina…" he said, looking back at his mother.

"How is she?" she asked.

Inigo shrugged. "She's out of danger. The wound was d-deep, and poisoned, but we- they… got her o the healers in time. If she'd been left any later…" He shook his head, and rubbed his face.

"She's safe now," Lucina said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "She's alive, Inigo. There's no way we would have let her die."

"I know, I- that's… that's good," he said, trying to smile. But Lucina noticed the way his shoulders shook, and how he kept rubbing his thumbs over his mother's hands obsessively, and the tears which suddenly made their way down his cheeks, and could stand it no longer.

"Inigo…" she said, pulling him into a hug. He hugged her back, sobbing openly now. She sat down beside him, rubbing his back, trying to comfort him, while he cried, all his bravado stripped away, showing the insecurity, the _fear_ he had, that he would always have, of losing the people he loved most in the world, and it broke her heart.

"Shh," she murmured, stroking his hair, tears running down her own face, when a sudden sound from the cot made her look down.

"Inigo!" she whispered. "Olivia's waking up!"

Inigo turned to see Olivia stirring, blinking up at them. "Mother!" he exclaimed, happily. Letting go of Lucina, he grabbed his mother's hands and kissed them. "You're awake!"

"I-Inigo, you… hello," Olivia said, smiling groggily.

"Olivia!" Gaius came running up to the cot, his arm healed. "Olivia, you woke up!"

"Yes… w-weren't there… some Risen around?" Olivia asked.

Inigo laughed. "Mother, that was hours ago! You're in the healers' tent now!"

As the little family crowded around each other, Lucina backed away. She was smiling like a maniac; she couldn't help it. Inigo was back to his old self, laughing, talking, but she could see the way he saw still holding onto both of their hands tightly, as if afraid to lose them again.

She exited the tent to run into her father, who frowned at her. "Lucina, have you been- waah!" Chrom cried out, as Lucina hugged him tightly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Lucina said, smiling. "It's just, I'm happy to see you." _'You are important to us- all of you- our parents, our world. And we will protect you.'_

* * *

**Read and Review please!**


	3. Chapter 3

Hi, I'm back with another chapter! Thanks to everyone who reviewed!

I would have updated this sooner, but I had exams, an then the E3 came up and everything was Final Fantasy for a while :-P

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem.**

* * *

Inigo wandered through the market, one eye on the products at the different stalls, the other on the women who were out shopping. He loved the hustle and bustle of the place. More than that, he loved the sweet young ladies wandering around, so lovely in their colorful dresses and their sweet, smiling faces. They reminded him of flowers, each so unique and beautiful in their own way. Inigo loved flowers, almost as much as he loved women. Both had been scarce in the time which he had come from.

Today, however, someone else kept coming into his thoughts. _'Lucina,' _he thought, wondering what the princess was up to. He hadn't really talked to her for some time now, not with the whole tickling thing, and the dancing incident. He wondered if he should go and apologize, or just go talk to her, or _something_, but he couldn't just find the courage to. Flirting with other girls was fine, but somehow, Lucina was… off-limits.

And yet Lucina was the one he wanted to talk to at the moment, more than anyone or anything else.

He was passing by a flower stall, when a large display of white daisies caught his eye. They reminded him of Lucina. When they'd been little, Lucina had always loved white daisies. Now, of course, she never let anyone know, but when they'd been little, she had loved their smell and how nice they'd looked. He remembered once, coming by her lying in a field of daisies, her eyes closed, a smile on her face, looking so contented, that he hadn't had the heart to disturb her. That had been the time he had first realized that he'd been in love with her.

Smiling at the memory, he went to the stall, and greeted the shop-keeper. "How much for these?" he asked, indicating the daisies. The man named his price. It was a bit higher than what Inigo had been expecting, and it must have showed on his face, for the shop-keeper said quickly: "But sir, these flowers are the finest in all of Ylisse! Look at them, each one is perfect!"  
That was true enough. They were indeed magnificent flowers. He would buy them for Lucina, Inigo decided. She was worth it. Accordingly he paid the man, and brought two dozen daisies, making a sizeable bouquet. Grinning with delight, he set off to find Lucina. _'Perhaps these will make her smile!'_ the thought excitedly.

He found Lucina back at camp, sitting on a tree stump, frowning.

"Lucina!" He exclaimed, walking up to her, the flowers hidden behind his back. She looked up at him. "Inigo, um, what do you want?" she asked.

"Well, I brought you something," he said, bringing out the flowers with a flourish. "Here you go!"

Lucina stared at the flowers. "For me?" she asked.

"Yeah," Inigo said, laughing.

Lucina took the flowers slowly. "I— um, thank you," she said, blushing. "I mean, why—why?"

"You like daisies, right?" Inigo said. "I saw these and they reminded me of you. As a sort of a…" he fumbled for the words, avoiding the ones which were present at the forefront of his mind. "… as a 'I-know-you-like-them-so-I-will-get-them-for-you' gift," he finished lamely. _'Nice Inigo, real smooth_,' he though to himself.

Lucina stared at him, her face still red, and he wondered if he hadn't made a colossal blunder. Then she looked down at the flowers and smelled them, and a smile came on her face.

"These are beautiful," she said, softly.

'_Finally!_' Inigo crowed to himself. Out loud he said: "Well, you know, so are you, so you and the flowers will look good together. Besides, now you're smiling! That in itself is more beautiful than a whole field of flowers."

Lucina looked up at him and reddened even further. "Um, right, thanks, thank you," she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, the smile still on her lips. "I'll just go, um, put these in my tent."

As she walked away, Inigo watched her go. _'She looks so beautiful,'_ he thought. Feeling pleasantly happy, he walked off towards his own tent.

* * *

Some time later, Inigo was sitting in his tent, polishing his sword, when someone thumped on his tent's canvas.

"Inigo, are you there?" Lucina's voice came from outside.

"Yeah, I'm here," Inigo said, looking up. Lucina entered, holding a small package in her hands. He smiled at her. "Wow, um, so what's up?" he asked, a little confused.

"Well, I was at the market," Lucina began, a little hesitantly. "And I saw this, and I thought I'd get this for you." Saying this, she pushed the package into his arms.

"Lucina, I can't take this," Inigo protested. "Is this because of the flowers?"

"No!" Lucina said quickly. "I mean, yes, sort of, but I—just look at it. I saw it and I thought that you would look so wonderful in it!" Smiling, she nodded to him. "Open it."

Inigo shrugged, opening the package. There was a garment inside. He took it out, held it up, and his jaw dropped.

"Well, isn't it lovely?" Lucina asked.

It was a waistcoat. Entirely covered with bright, multicolored sequins. Inigo stared at it. "It's… bright," he said finally.

"I knew you'd like it!" Lucina said enthusiastically. "It's so bright and so beautiful, and you'd look so great in it, especially when you dance!"

"I can't accept this," he said. "Lucina, this—"

"Yes you can," Lucina said. "It's a sort of a... 'sorry-and-thank-you-for-everything' gift. Besides, it's your birthday soon, right? Accept it as a present."

Inigo tore his eyes away from the offending garment and looked up at her. She was smiling at him, clearly excited with her gift.

It was the smile that did it.

"Fine, I accept it," he said, getting up. "I owe you a gift, though; a better one than some flowers."

"Don't say that, those flowers were beautiful," Lucina said, shaking her head seriously. "Really. I—I appreciate them." Nodding to him, she ducked out of the tent.

Inigo looked back at the waistcoat, running his fingers over it fondly. It was hideous. But she had gotten it for him. She, Lucina, had gotten this for him. It could have been a rag and he wouldn't have cared.

* * *

**Read and Review please!**


End file.
